Sermon in Review: Membership

Our sermon on Membership Sunday addressed five questions regarding church membership. It helped fill-in the gaps we might have about the Bible’s teaching on membership. It also explained what membership at FBW looks like. Below is an overview of that message.

1. Who is membership for?

Church membership is for Christians. Everyone who places faith in Christ should and must be part of a local church.

• It is an indispensable mark of the Christian.
• It is exclusive, for Christians only. Church membership is not for non-Christians.

2. Where should I be a member?

You should be a member in a local church that proclaims the gospel and preaches the Bible.

• Join a church where the priority is the preaching and teaching of the Scriptures. All else at a healthy church flows from this.
• Do not be duped to join a church driven by growth, numbers, music, entertainment, or self-esteem sermons. Malnourished churches produce malnourished Christians.

3. Why should I be a member?

You should be a member because God, through Bible, commands it.

In “Church Membership,” by Jonathan Leeman, the NT church is seen by …

• By numbers (Acts 1:15, 2:41, 4:4).
• By locations (Acts 2:46, 5:11-12).
• By rosters (Acts 8:3, 12:1-2).
• With Christian leaders responsible for specific Christians (1 Pet 5:2).
• With Christians submitting to specific leaders (Heb 13:17).
• Guarding herself against false professions of faith (1 Cor 5:13, 1 John 2:19).

4. What does membership mean?

The Bible teaches that church membership involves certain responsibilities and privileges.

• Involvement in the church (1 Cor 12:11, 1 Pet 4:10). This is serving your church.
• Submitting to Christ’s under-shepherds (Heb 13:17). Obedience to your leaders is good for your soul.
• Following Christ’s plan for holiness. At FBW, we follow Christ’s commands for church discipline (Matt 18). We love our people too much to see them persist in sin; we want to restore them to a joyful, renewed relationship with Christ where that relationship is fractured.
• Living in unity in community (Eph 4:1-3). The Christian life is designed to be lived out in community with other believers. We must forsake the individualism of the culture that is self-centered and isolating.

5. How do I become a member?

At FBW, you become a member by following the process for church membership.

• We discussed how one becomes a member at FBW and the process of assimilation into the body of Christ here.

In conclusion, THIS CHURCH IS AWESOME!

• You are hitting so many of these mark already!
• You are God’s people. Because God’s people matter, church membership matters!